Hi everyone! My name is Andrea and I am the newest employee here at CommonWealth Press, and I’m a girl*! If you stop by the shop on E. Carson St. you may find me, barely visibly, behind a display table. I like it this way…sneak attack! I can not express enough how stoked I am to be a part of this family. The first time I heard about CommonWealth Press I was about 14 years old when my brother came here for his t-shirt printing needs. Cut to me ten years later working here and loving it.

This whole adventure came about when Dan Rugh hit me up on THE Facebook asking if I wanted to work on some shirts that were a little more unique than the typical Pittsburgh shirts they have in the store. After double checking that the message was in fact meant for me, I agreed. A few coffee meetings later, I am happy to say I created two awesome designs to be printed in the near future (so keep a look out!!!!). To my surprise, during one meeting The Dan’s offered me this part time position I am currently sitting at, right now, in real life. The rest is history, as they say. I assume “they” are very smart, and doing quite well for themselves.

If you were wondering who lovingly puts the orders together and trucks them to the post office so they get to you for your wearing pleasure, it’s me! Although, if you are ever dissatisfied with what you receive, Dan Rock did it.

You are reading the first of many posts I will be doing, so buckle up! I guarantee it will be a bumpy ride traveling on the copious amount of bunny trails I tend to go on, but we will all be on them together and that is the most important.

This is my photo inspiration..the best model I know.

*the reason CWP is now diversified.

we (CommonWealth Press and Sapling Press) are opening our doors for yet another print-your-own party.
this one is going to be set up so you can print your own valentines cards just in time for valentines day… WED FEB 8th from 6-9

you dont need ANY experience what so ever…we will be creating 8 screen print and 2 letter press stations – each with a different design – then cutting you loose to print your faces off. we are designing everything so they will not only work as a single print but will also over print in combinations to work together in an *infinite amount of variations – so if you want to print one station over top of the next over the next over the next – youll be creating your very own one-of-a-kind card for that special someone. then print another for that other special someone. and then another for that other other special someone. (damn, you really get around)

and if you dont have a special someone, we will have some designs for that too….and beer. that always helps.

so this is the official invite and announcement BUT we have VERY limited space so secure your spot now.

tickets are $30 each and include snacks, beverages (beer/pop), a killer playlist by DJ PRINTSBURGH and as many cards as you want to print (within reason and/or until our stock runs out).

you can reserve your spot right now – hit the ADD TO CART button below. space is (very) limited.

THANKS! hope to see you there -

*not really infinite – i just didnt feel like doing the math

12.09.11

Last night was amazing.

I know amazing is an overused word but I mean it sincerely. Our warehouse grand opening was something I had been dreaming of for over 10 years, no kidding.

Apologies for the nostalgia but I bought my first press because it fit my 8x8x6 basement. Then I spent the next 3 years down there, printing hunched over because the ceiling was shorter than I was. When my wife started it only eliminated space. 2 of us crawling over each other to print, or fold, or whatever…commonwealth press has always been a cramped but determined situation.

Since then we have turned every space we ever occupied into a printshop (whether it wanted to be one or not). First our basement, then a loft above the beer distributor, then the shop on carson, they all worked – but we sure as hell forced it.

Now into our current warehouse space – arms stretched out and up as far as we can stretch. I know that doesn’t sound like that big of a thing but its huge, literally. Trust me we aren’t taking it for granted. We know why this is all possible and I guess that’s why it was such a proud and humbling moment – looking at everyone that has supported us, that came to celebrate with us. These are all faces that have made this space and our very means of making a living possible.

So thank you. Thank you for coming to our event. Thank you for sharing your time with us. Thank you for giving a shit about supporting a small local business and being the reason for our growth. I’m honored to work with you.
Thank you. For everything.

I promise we wont let you down.

sincerely (and on behalf of shannon and all of commonwealth press),
dan rugh

Notes on our event:

The letterpress studio is Sapling Press – run by the very talented Lisa Krowinski. www.saplingpress.com
The food was catered by Pipers Pub www.piperspub.com here in the south side. I cannot recommend them enough, but I certainly will try.
We had Clover Bakery make our custom keystone shaped cookies:
cloverbakeryllc at gmail.com. Phone. 412-849-5593
The beer was all local and as follows:
Penn Brewery:     Penn Kaiser Pils,Penn Pilsner,Allegheny Pale Ale www.pennbrew.com
East End Brewing co: Fat Gary www.eastendbrewing.com
Full Pint: 1 Lager and 1 Amber,  www.fullpintbrewing.com
Flat Rock: Incline plane ale. www.flatrockbeer.com

Also, we have a limited amount of invitations left over. If you would like one as a keepsake – please let me know or just stop by.  They are 2 color screenprinted with 3 spot letterpress – and one color screened on the envelope. One of my favorite pieces to date.

its been pretty eventful around here. we get to work on some pretty rad stuff coming thru and going on in pittsburgh…and we are eternally grateful for the opportunities we have stumbled upon.
most recently we prototyped some artwork gabriel roth pulled together for mac miller’s new release and tour.

we ran it as a simulated process print using 8 colors on a super soft ringspun cotton black tshirt. the final result was a nice sharp and vibrant full color image – but super thin to keep it nice and comfortable when wearing.

keep your eyes open for this print – its available now via merch direct.
heres a detail of our final print…came out so detailed and crisp. amazing process and product.

now if only merch direct could make it look this sharp….but alas….

the aforementioned gabe also runs http://www.columbusurbanthreads.com/ check em out.

commonwealth press…printing awesome shit for awesome dudes since way back.

common wealth press is literally a mom and pop shop. my wife and i started it in the basement of our home…in the middle of our neighborhood, the lively and historic south side of pittsburgh. we own our home and have lived here for over 10 years. it is a mere 167 steps from our store that we rent from our landlord, the building has been in his family for generations. i am raising 2 little girls in this community as well. its a great and amazingly walkable neighborhood. i know my neighbors. i support the other store owners on my street on a daily (hourly) basis. sure it gets crazy on the weekends but  i can honestly say that this is the closest feeling of community i have ever had.

annnnd this arrived in the mail a few days ago (above).  it calls for a boycott of many of the businesses i support.  i guess a good many have been mailed thru the neighborhood. it sucked to see not only my company on there, but also other local independently owned businesses as well. in fact – theres not one chain store on the list. the boycott apparently stems from a majority support of a neighborhood improvement district (nid). the mailing was sent from a realty stats company – dan murrer 1911 east carson street (a few doors down from me). ive gone down a few different times to discuss where he was coming from with this. id like to hear his perspective but no one ever answers the door. ive talked to others on the list. a few aren’t even in favor of a nid but are on the list anyway.

thats the thing – i totally support the right to your own opinion. life would be pretty boring if we all thought exactly the same about everything. however boycotting small and family owned businesses for reasons that haven’t even been researched or thought out isnt only absurd – its dangerous. whats the end result? they all close and make way for some fast food? more bars?

i support the nid but even more i fully support any one that has taken the risk and fear involved with starting their own business. putting forward the effort to cut a foothold on your own and do something for yourself is something to be commended – to be celebrated – certainly not boycotted.

in answer to this boycott -  commonwealth press is offering $5 off of any retail purchase in our shop in exchange for this mailer.
if you didn’t get the mailer – we are also offering $5 off  any retail purchase in our shop with a sales receipt from any of the businesses on this list.

please support small business. buy local.

sincerely and proudly,
dan rugh
owner of commonwealth press

—————————————–

ive added some info  if you want some history on the neighborhood and why there is or isnt a need for the neighborhood improvement district. again, form your own opinon….just dont try to kill small businesses with ignorance of any kind.

heres a super condensed history lesson on the neighborhood:
the south side was hit pretty hard in the late 70s early 80s – the mills closed and the south side all but died.
enter the south side local development company (ssldc) – a 20 year plan to revitalize the entire neighborhood. under the ssldc the south side grew:
• 250+ new businesses
• 200+ storefronts renovated
• 700+ new homes constructed
• 12% vacancy rate in 2008, down from 40+% in 1982
this info and TONS more is available at http://www.southsidepgh.com/southsidelocaldevelopmentcompanyhistory

the ssldc did exactly what it was supposed to and the neighborhood blossomed…even won awards.
it was a 20 year plan and that 20 years was up this past october. the nid is the next step to continue the services the ssldc offered.

read about the nid here: http://www.ssimprovementdistrict.com/

its no secret i love pittsburgh. this show was one of those reasons why. its such a comfortably small city with tons of amazing shit going on at every turn. being included on something like this is such an honor and a fun as hell way to spend a night. 2 miles from my house, backstage, drinking beers on the side stage watching joe and bruce kill it in front of a small venue.

the night before we had pretty sweet tickets to see louis CK.
oh yeah and andy dick stopped by, bought some shirts and asked to get a pic….seriously.

this past week was one big WTF in the most fun and weird way i can remember.

still confused and laughing about it.

danrugh

We recently returned from our annual pilgrimage to Gainesville, Fl for THE FEST.  Now you may not be a punk rock fan, or have ever heard of Hot Water Music or Dillinger 4, but I can say without a nanosecond of hesitation if you have heard of those bands, and you aren’t going to the fest, you are doing it wrong. This has to be one of the greatest weekends of the year, and in year 10 its only getting better!  2011 marks the second year of Commonwealth Press being a main sponsor.  It’s an incredible honor to be able to be a part of something so amazing, and it doesn’t hurt that you get to see people wearing shirts we printed all weekend.

For those that have never been but are considering going, I’ll give you a summary of what your weekend in sunny Florida may include.  This year we left the RV behind and decided to fly down, so bright and early Friday morning my friends start showing up at my house for early morning beers before our flight.  The party continued at the airport bar, and certainly didn’t stop when we got on the plane.   After a short flight to Orlando, and a minivan jaunt to Gainesville, we are at THE FEST ready to party.

We rush to registration, get our wristbands and are immediately off to see Small Brown Bike. This is where your jealousy should kick in… on Friday night we saw: Small Brown Bike, Dead To Me, Samiam, Tigers Jaw, KID DYNAMITE!, our local friends Run Forever, The Holy Mess, The Great Explainer, Touche Amore, Bouncing Souls, Sleepytime Trio, No Trigger, Make Do and Mend, Polar Bear Club, and HOT WATER MUSIC!  All in one night! There were 2 more nights like this left, and that list doesn’t even include the bands I wish I had seen, but had to miss due to schedule conflicts. After 1 million beers and as many bands we returned to almighty Jim Devine’s house who was rad enough to put up a bunch of smelly kids for the weekend.

Saturday we awoke sore and ready to do it all again. A great thing about the fest, in addition to the bands, is all the incredible restaurants that are ready to cure a hangover with a bloody mary and some gator burritos, or oxtail, or some other incredible local delicacy.  Boca Fiesta, a mexican joint owned by ex-Against Me! drummer, is not too be missed while in Gainesville, as is the Reggae Shack, Gator Dawgs, or Bagels and Noodles. After filling our bellies we were off to see some more incredible bands and get in some good hangs with friends I wish I got to see more often.  Highlights of Saturday included: an acoustic Menzingers show to a room with more people in it than the fire code may have liked, Armalite, Such Gold, Reverse The Curse, Iron Chic, None More Black, Paint It Black, and Red City Radio just to name a few.

Sundays in Gainesville mean No Idea Records flea market and cookout. It’s a great place to find rare records and score a test pressing or 2.  I saw a kid pick up two Hot Water Music test pressings for $200, wow! After that we of course had to watch the Steeler game, we are Pittsburghers after all, and we found an incredible Steelers bar.  It was like being in Pittsburgh, Steeler jerseys everywhere, people drinking Iron City, it was incredible.  It also happened to work out perfectly that our friends in Captain, We’re Sinking played exactly at halftime.  What a halftime show!  After an epic Steelers victory we made our way to see the Upright Citizens Brigade touring troupe.  This was the first year the fest tried comedy, and I have to say I approve!  It was great and a welcome break from all the bands.

After the party that is THE FEST comes to an end on Sunday night and you wake up on Monday realizing you need to get back to your real life, it’s a difficult realization, but knowing that the next fest is only 362 days away, and probably already being planned gives me enough of a bright spot on the horizon to be back at the shop on Tuesday.  If that doesn’t sound like fun to you, you should either check your pulse or stop taking life so seriously, cause it’s awesome!  SEE YOU NEXT YEAR GAINESVILLE!

-Dan Rock

photos from Nicole Kibert / www.elawgrrl.com

welcome to our brand new website.
we hope you love it. if not tell us why and we will alter it to your lovabilty.

theres some parts that arent totally finished yet…but knowing us, what did you expect.

this is however one of the many first steps in what we are hoping is a long line of “shining things up” around here. theres a ton of announcements coming so PLEASE stop back and PLEASE sign up for our mailing list (its that little box to the bottom left there). we are going to be running specials from time to time on a mailing list basis only…so get in on that asap.

as far as the here and now, please enjoy our current special of 12 free shirts added to your order of 50 or more shirts.
the only catch is that this only applies to orders placed on or after 7/11 – you must mention this ad AND your order must be placed in full by july 22 2011…and only covers standard basic brands of shirts – we cant afford to be giving away all those fancy fashion fit ones.
(check out our apparel options for more info)

get that art together, get it over, sell some shirts, come back for more and start your clothing empire – or support your tour – or advertise your business. whatever you want to do is what we want to help you get done.

thank you so much for your years of support. we are doing our best to assure that this is only the beginning.

growing slowly stronger, not bigger…sincerely,
CWP (all 6 of us)

so im in there messing around with the backend of our new site and i accidentally made it live. sure, i couldve fixed it – but i know myself.
this thing would never go live if i kept playing around with it.

ill take it as a sign.  so heck with it, here we are!

its live.

if you see anything thats not working right, dont sweat it. its all getting tweaked as you read this. if you cant find something  you need, contact us and let us know what you want and we will do our best to get you what you need.

so yes, the new site is here…and yet still en route.

wouldnt be us if it was easy. hope you enjoy this and all the whatnot that is coming.

with much love

all of us at commonwealth press

we teamed up with our pals over at the pgh based art blog steeltown anthem to pull together a wonderful evening going over the basics of screen printing.

we pulled in art from some locals (including Strawberryluna, Mike Budai, Matt Gondek, Dan Minsky, Sapling Press and cwp). ill have the art exposed and the screens ready to roll…once everyone shows up ill give a base level intro to screen printing and how to make a print… and then we can all cut loose. paper will be supplied and you can make some one of a kind prints, hang out, ask questions and pretty much just have a good and hopefully informative time.

:.DJ Llamo.: will be there playing good music while we print!

registration and all of that info is being taken care of via steeltown anthem, so hit up their site for the deets!

FROM STEELTOWN ANTHEMS BLOG:

Information:
2315 Wharton Street on the South Side
Thursday, July 14th from 6pm – 9pm
Space is limited to 25 people only

+ $20 per person (space is limited to 25 people)
+ Pick whichever artwork you want to print
+ You can pull up to 3 prints and anything in addition is just a $1 a piece!

$20 Admission Fee to reserve your space! Sorry, SOLD OUT!
(dont worry, this is just the beginning)